The last of my Celebration III pictures *sniff*

Well, this is it. With the link to these pictures, my entire trip is displayed for you. My next post will begin my retelling of this most excellent trip. Till then, enjoy:

Now it's time....to say goodbye...to Starwars family....


Bye for now!

The next 50 pics of the evening

Well, I am almost done posting pictures. After this set, there will be about 50 or so more, then I can relay the full story of my excellent trip into all things Star Wars. Till then, see the following:

One click to the magical Indi tour

TTFN!

Yeay! Next 50 pics!

I have a total of something like 260 pictures. I will keep posting them in 50 picture albums for you till they are all up.

The photo album is strong with you...but you are not a Paparazzi yet!

Cheers!

The next 50 photos are up

I have just finished uploading the next 50 photos, and have linked it here:

Click on me for super happy fun time

Happy viewing!

Photo Album from CIII

Hello All -

I am trying to get all of my photos titled and up on the net so you can see them. Here is a link to click on with the first 50 pics...hopefully this will work.

CIII first 50 photos

It appears that you have to create an account on Snapfish to see them, but don't be concerned about that. Just be aware that Snapfish occasionally sends junk mail (like one or two emails a month) to the email address that you enter, so use a secondary email address if you want.

Let me know if this link doesn't provide the visual gold.

Have many stories to tell...but first must get these pics up for you all.

Till later!

Well, it looks like I'm travelin' solo (not the Han kind)

My friend Mike called me today, and he is capitulating to the demand of his job, which told him that he will have to work during his planned vacation or they would fire him. Unemployment sucks, definitely. But I have a feeling that they were blowing smoke at him, and that he is such a fine worker that he would have had his job regardless. He is not a gamblin man, however, and I am forthwith headed to Star Wars Celebration III all alone. This makes for quite a different trip, but I am determined to make the best of it. I feel bad for him, though, as he will be missing the experience of a Star Wars fan's lifetime! This will be my last post before the journey begins, and I will have I'm sure many stories and pictures to relay when I return. The pictures will now have me craning my neck with an arm extension out the side, but will be intriguing none-the-less.

By the way, I'd like to give a special thanks to Nick and Emily, who are letting me borrow their 4 Mpixel camera so I don't have to take pictures with my old broken down 2.1 Mpixel one.

May the Force be with you all!

My Family, Spicing up my living room and coloring up my blog 

Technology gone bad

I believe I am now unofficially a blog addict. Emily (see her blog site in links) has introduced me to a whole new side to blogging, which I have concluded is the seedy underbelly of the hobby. This sneaky tool, which can be accessed by clicking on the little stack of books under my counter, actually tells (anyone interested in this info) how many people have checked the site per day, what time they checked, and how they got to the site, if there was link clickage involved. This has now eaten into my already addicted brain, and I must check my "site meter" at least three times a day. What makes it even worse is that over the last couple of days, virtually nobody has visited the site, so I find myself staring at the same pathetic numbers everytime I log on. Its like middle school all over again....I'm a loser, but won't you please like me?

On the up side, apparently my site is already on the Yahoo search engine and the Yahoo UK search engine, which thrilled me to no end. Now I might have to keep my blog title the way it is, so people searching for "Dingo Ate Baby" can find my site. Because, well, who doesn't periodically search for "Dingo Ate Baby"?

To keep my fragile audience interested in visiting this site, now that you know that you are probably the only one reading this, I will now post a picture, since I have noticed that my site has been quite wordy for a while. So now after I do this, you are required to visit regularly. Except for this coming Wed through Monday, when I will be in Indianapolis geeking it up something fierce. But after that....NO EXCUSE!

First Class Interpreters!

Now that we have a two and a half year old repeater baby, who is picking up words on a daily basis, understanding those words coming out of his little face can be quite a feat. For example:

Dahby Feeya Deeah = Darby fell down
Mah Mah Mah Buca Bah = I would like to continue playing with mama's Soccerball
Gah Tuton = The economic conditions of the former Soviet republic do not endear its citizens to their newly created democracy
Bah Bah Poopah Bah Bah = Bye bye Pooper, bye bye!
Yah Yah Gah Gahk (while holding race car kite) = Race Car Kite
Bee Bee Bee = Emily
Daya Mahnak Yah Yah Peez = The sum of the square of the other two sides
Mah Bahya Bah Cut = I would like to stay on the basketball court
Duhya Bee Gaht Yah Yah = ?

My wife and I have had to become first class interpreters of the special English dialect known as toddler. To the layman, this special style of speaking is fairly unintelligible, much like ebonics, algebra, and teenager. To a select class of young parents, however, this has become such a common way to communicate that we could potentially get together and have a dinner party spoken entirely in toddler. I would give you an exerpt, but I may as well be writing Cuneiform.

Today I got my 4-day pass!!

Yes, my friend Mike and I are headed off via a big fast airplane to Indianapolis, where we will experience the Star Wars extravaganza of a lifetime. Star Wars Celebration III is what it is called, and I've been looking forward to it ever since Celebration II. I've been to all three Celebrations (the first being in Denver in 1999), and each has been an event to remember. This one looks to be the most incredible, however, as it is most likely the last one. Each Star Wars Celebration is held roughly a month before the opening of a new Star Wars film, and Episode III is the last Star Wars film, so.....

For those of you who don't know me, I am quite a huge Star Wars fan. I have loved every Star Wars movie that has come out, but of course love the original trilogy the best. I am wise enough to know, however, that the primary reason this is so is because I am now an adult, and am more analytical and jaded about theater experiences. Many folks do not realize this fact, and view the new trilogy as somehow a blasphemy of the old movies. This is sad, because if they could only jump into the mind of their youth, they would see that Star Wars has not lost its magic, they have.

That being said, there are some artistic decisions George Lucas has made that I very much disagree with. These decisions poke at me like a poking poky brain poker when I watch the films, but I refuse to let them spoil my enjoyment in the most swashbuckling of universes. It is with regard to these questionable choices that I offer you my spontaneous top ten list:

Top Ten Reasons I Would Like to Poke George Lucas with a Sharp Stick

# 10: Changing Anakin's ghost at the end of Return of the Jedi
What an insult to Sebastian Shaw! Not to mention that it makes absolutely no sense. He's old. He dies. Hey, now his ghost loses 20 years off his face! Stupid.

#9: Midichlorians
Hey. Thanks for scientifically explaining the force. I'm sure everyone the audience was thinking, "You know, this movie makes perfect sense. Except for that force power. Can someone give me an equation or graph for that? That would be greeeeaaat."

#8: Anakin had no father
I'm sure Jesus really appreciates this plot tidbit. There was really no need for it, except for conjuring up comparisons between the man who would be Darth Vader and our Holy Savior. Anakin's father could have come from many different places. How about Senator Palpatine as Anakin's father? Now there's a plot twist for you.

#7: "If you strike me down, I shall become more powerful than you can possibly imagine."
Uh, yeah. Sure. You are going to become a little blue ghost and follow Luke around giving ethereal advice. Vader knows this. Who are you trying to fool?


#6: Not including deleted scenes with the Original Trilogy DVDs
OK...this isn't actually part of the movies, but it disturbs me so much I threw it in. There is no doubt in my mind, the only reason they were left out was to try to entice us fans to purchase the ENTIRE six movies in some uberexpensive megaset after they all are out on DVD. Great, because I really need a fourth freakin version of all the films (and Lucas isn't quite rich enough yet).

#5: Qui-Gon and Obi Wan's hair is completely dry shortly after entering Gungan City
This is a small thing, but was brought to my attention by my lovely wife. Now it bugs me. Couldn't they have made a little more effort towards plot continuity? Throw em a towel, at least!

#4: Luke shows more concern for his shot up R2 unit than he does for his shot down boyhood friend
This takes place at the end of A New Hope. Biggs Darklighter, Luke's wingman that bites it on the trench run (gangly dude with porno black mustache), grew up with Luke on Tatooine and was supposedly his best friend. When he gets spaced by Darth Vader, though, all Luke could manage was a small downcast look of regret. Where's your fury, man?? Blow that friggin ball up for your pal!

#3: Wow, there's a lot of stinkin entries in a top ten list!
Like, uh, at least eight or something.

#2: No, Greedo really shot first! Oh, didn't like that? Well, maybe they can shoot together? How's that?
I'll admit, I'm like the 1 billionth person to complain about this change. But it is so infuriating, and really shows how George has changed over the years. There are two problems with this change: One, it is unrealistic that Greedo could miss from point blank range, and frankly insulting to the poor bounty hunter. I mean, come on. If a jawa could shoot R2 from point blank range..... Two, stop trying to save us from Han's smuggler side! He's a smuggler with a heart of gold, not a heart of gold with a heart of gold. If he were that, he wouldn't need credits. He'd be rich in love. For the world. And for everyone. Forever. *kiss*

And finally....number one sharp stick pokin reason:

#1: Freakin Jar Jar Binks
OK, I'll admit again, I'm like the 10 billionth complainer about this worthless character. But I would like to respond to George's "explanation" for the schmuck, mainly that "This movie is for six year olds. If older fans have a problem with that, then that is too bad." (Not an exact quote, but close enough) Now anyone that knows me, and for those that don't but would like to refer to the above paragraphs, I am pretty darn good at getting into my inner six-year-old when I want to, and often do when watching these movies. My inner six-year-old has this to say to George Lucas: "Stop pandering to me. You had me at lightsabers." You see, the original trilogy appealed to the very young not because of slapstick stupid characters, but because of adventurous story line, guns, space battles, and occasional funny addins (i.e. belching sarlaac pit). These new movies HAVE all that! No need to add more. George, you had them at lightsabers.


I have now dumped on my beloved movies quite enough. There will be no more criticizing of the bestest movies ever on my blog. From me anyway. Unless I've forgotten something. Which I don't believe I have. Now I must stop typing, since I have wasted my whole evening. Good Night!

My child tries to catch the moon

It is pretty adorable. Whenever he sees the moon in the sky, he first points it out to me.
"Dada. Moon!"

Then he jumps up in the air and grabs at it. When he comes down with nothing in his little fist, he goes "Uh Oh."

That doesn't deter him though. He tries and tries again to get that moon. And eventually, he turns to his big old dad and says "Dada. Get Moon!" At which point I have to jump up and try to grab it. Which leads to another "Uh Oh!"

The cheery-eyed optimist / email forward story would say something like this: "Isn't it amazing what you will try and accomplish when failure won't deter you? If only we had that kind of spirit, that nothing will keep us down and that we can do anything if only we try that one more time, think of what we could do!"

The bleary-eyed pessimist would say something like this: "As I watched him try and try for that moon, knowing that he will never reach it, I thought of all the future failures that he would face in his life, and hoped somehow that he would set his sight on attainable goals that wouldn't lead to depression and defeat."

On the other other hand, I say this instead: "You know, it would be a lot cuter if my child weren't 15 years old."

This is my bio on drugs....any questions?

I was asked to write a bio at work, for our company's intranet. I thought I would share what I initially came up with.:

Starting about thirty years ago, my climb from obscurity to unabashed superstar unobtrusively began in the backwater berg of Ferndale, WA. While facing seemingly insurmountable hurdles, I nevertheless trudged through the tough times, giddily floated through the sunny times, and am now on the verge of greatness here at (my company). Dwelling in the crisp clear waters of Document Control, I have the distinct pleasure of interacting with a wide variety of engaging populace that share my place of employment. And, as I rise ever closer towards ultimate celebrity status, the path to which only Doc Control can provide, friends and associates will be swept up in the tide of grandeur that will propel us to the pinnacle of significance. Oh, and I also like donuts.

Needless to say, it was summarily rejected.

My coat makes me smell like a homeless man

Getting ready for work last week, this realization hit me in the face with a stale breeze. Freshly showered and sweet-odored, I put on my coat and immediately stunk. I don't know what it is about coat closets, but they all have a similar smell, and none of them are good. The convergence of so much outerwear in one location must offend God. When washed, the common coat (or Jacketous Stencholis) will smell great for approximately two wearings, smell ok for three more wearings, then once again adopt the infamous coat closet reek. This problem has stymied scientists for centuries, as they have to deal with a similar problem: lab coat stink. Of course, most scientists don't really care how they smell, which is likely why the problem hasn't been solved.

I can change my title!

I discovered today that I can change the title of my blog at will. That makes me extremely happy, because the title I had originally chosen was hastily picked and rather dull. Also, I will probably be changing my blog title at will, simply because I can. I must make this particular post short, so I can consume nutrition and scamper off to see the ultra violent film "Sin City." Until later....

This is me. You found me. Now stop staring, I'm not going to get any prettier. 

Welcome to ME! or from ME! or....err....well then.

Hello Everyone!

I figured it was about time that I ventured into the world of blogging. This is my first ever post on my first ever blog. I don't promise to update it regularly. In fact, if this is my one and only post, you will know that my foray into blogging has been a complete and total failure. But, if my wildest dreams come true, then it will be a showcase of some of my writing, creative and otherwise, and that would be a wonderful way to waste some time.

Why start this page? Why now? Well, I have to admit that the only reason I started was because I wanted to leave a comment on my friend's blog, to tell her that I liked her quirky style of prose, but she didn't allow annonymous comments on her page, so I had to ACTUALLY get my own blog to leave a comment. Humph.....thanks, a lot, CRYSTAL! Actually, I sincerely thank you, Crystal, for a blog by me was long past due.

I am frightfully happy that my blog's name and site location were available. I must admit, I spent 10 freakin minutes wondering from what the heck address I wanted it located, and in the time it took to write this entry, I have completely forgotten its address. Nonetheless, I remember being quite pleased that it was available, and I also remember that it was a Star Wars reference. Ahh there it is....popped back into my aged brain. STUPID BRAIN!